Raceways are common configurations used in conventional aquaculture industries. While providing a continuously flowing stream of naturally oxygenated water for the aquatic animals, certain raceways configurations are not without problems. For example, in concrete raceways having rectangular cross-sections, the solid waste produced by the animals is labor intensive to remove. The concrete walls are also abrasive to the extremities of fish which are often grown in the raceways. Flexible liners used to provide a buffer against the concrete walls often meet with their own design difficulties such as degradation due to exposure to atmospheric elements such as sunlight. Also, the moving water stream in the raceway can lift the liner and effectively reduce the volume available within the raceway.
Aquaculture systems using raceways having a U-shaped or semi-circular cross section benefit from reduced labor in waste removal from the raceway since the shape facilitates both natural and manual sweeping of the waste from the walls of the raceway towards a center drain pipe running longitudinally along the bottom of the raceway.